By Nwachinemere Kanu.
With Mr. Ayeni publicly distancing himself from both Ms. Alagwu and the child, one must wonder: why is she still clinging on? For Mr Ayeni who clearly wants nothing to do with her or the baby, she is clearly fighting a lost battle.
In a significant ruling, a Customary Court in Dawaki, Abuja, has declared that no marriage existed between former Skye Bank chairman Tunde Ayeni and Abuja-based lawyer Adaobi Alagwu. This decision comes amidst a complex legal battle that has highlighted issues of legitimacy, blackmail, and paternity claims.
The court’s judgment, delivered on Tuesday 11th March, 2025 in suit FCT/CC/CV/DKDK, dismissed Ms. Alagwu’s claims regarding their purported marriage, citing statutory limitations under the Marriage Act. This aside the fact that the process to customarily legitimize the arrangement was not complete as payment under the Igbo native law and custom do not ipso facto constitute marriage. The case, centered on the legitimacy of a union that Mr. Ayeni contended was never valid. He argued that his existing marriage to Abiola Ayeni, solemnised in 1994, rendered any alleged relationship with Ms. Alagwu legally void and that what he paid Adaobi’s family was not intended to constitute a marriage to her.
During the proceedings, Mr. Ayeni asserted that any financial support provided to Ms. Alagwu was given to her when he thought the child was his in the first instance and later as a result of her threat and blackmail. He emphasized that he had no legal or customary basis for a marital relationship with her.
Adding to the drama, Alagwu resorted to open and blatant blackmail after Dr. Ayeni withdrew a monthly allowance of N5 million and requested her to vacate the properties he entrusted to her where she and her mother resides.
A crucial aspect of the proceedings revolved around the paternity of Ms. Alagwu’s daughter, Omarosa. Mr. Ayeni denied fathering the child and called for DNA tests to be conducted, expressing doubts about the validity of previous test results presented by Ms. Alagwu. He accused her father, a self-proclaimed high chief, of coercing him into accepting responsibility for the child to avoid cultural disgrace. His allegations included claims that the DNA test results were fraudulent, with Mr. Ayeni proposing a second test at an independent center, which Ms. Alagwu reportedly refused.
Following the court’s ruling, which affirmed Mr. Ayeni’s position that no marriage ever existed and that he could not have been the father of her daughter, Ms. Alagwu’s claims were dismissed. The three-member panel, led by Adlin Achoru, found that the dispute was between Mr. Ayeni and Ms. Alagwu, not between him and his legally wedded wife and as such there was no basis for Adaobi to argue that the Court had no jurisdiction.
Mr. Ayeni expressed relief following the ruling, stating that he wants a clear record to make it convincingly and unambiguously clear that there is no connection between him and the lady. He emphasized that his marriage, reputation, and financial resources had been targeted in a campaign of blackmail and deception.
This now calls to question most of the publications that Adaobi and her friends have been posting on social media accusing Mr. Tunde Ayeni of defamation, has now been legally declared not to be true. Besides, how can Adaobi in her wildest imagination accuse a man who’s clearly defending his marriage and denying her and her child publicly of defamation when reverse should be the case. The question is, where’s Adaobi’s integrity that’s been defamed here? When she’s forcefully clinging on to a married man without minding societal respect and dignity for womanhood.
With this ruling, Mr. Tunde Ayeni’s testimonies during the proceedings and his interview, has led credence to the fact that he indeed never married Adaobi Alagwu, whatever monetary exchange that took place was succinctly explained in his testimony to be for the purpose of the child which the Alagwu family dubiously represented to be dowry. Some of the facts that emerged during the proceedings and Mr. Ayen’s testimony was to be effect that some of the pictures posted by Adaobi where they were standing together in what appears to be in a garden was said to have been taken about five years earlier when Adaobi celebrated her 30th birthday.
One tries to wonder why bring such pictures out to the public when it has no relevance to the present argument of marital status which was the basis the court action was instituted and that he did not father her daughter as Adaobi claimed. It is now clear that these are all stories steaming from blackmail to get as much money and material things from the man.
At this stage, if at all there is any morale of dignity left of Adaobi, this is the moment she should just walk away in her own interest, in the interest of her family and her daughter.
It appears that there are other motives behind Adaobi’s adamant claim as stated above. It is becoming clearer that Tunde Ayeni is the best thing that has ever happened to Adaobi in her entire life and she is refusing to let go! It is a mark of shame that a mother would leave her husband in Lagos and come to sit down in Abuja with a daughter who is blackmailing a married man as we were made to understand that she resides in one of Mr. Tunde Ayeni’s houses in Abuja. How come the mother cannot come to a reasonable sense to draw the line where her daughter have failed? It is very sad for a mother to take this destructive path to follow her daughter without shame and regard for tradition in the very rich Igbo cultural tradition and heritage.
Aside the role played by the mother, where is the father in all of these drama, the father has also failed as a father. We should pray to have parents who will not lose their self-esteem in the face of money and material gain. I am a very proud Igbo man from the eastern part of Nigeria and this is certainly not our way of life and behavior.
As the dust settles on this high-profile case, the question remains: Can Adaobi Alagwu just let go of her claims against Tunde Ayeni? With the court’s decisive ruling, the path forward for both parties is certain.
Nwachinemere Kanu writes from Idiato North, Imo State.
